Escape Rooms: Bars Where You Can Avoid Your Family

With a steady stream of relatives asking you how the job search is going or when you will be popping out a baby, weddings can be exhausting. But it's nothing you can't get through with a strong drink. We've got you covered with the best bars in which to avoid your mom, dad, chain-smoking uncle, and little cousin going through that annoying "why" phase.

Is being around all this family bringing up some repressed teenage angst? Head to this barcade and take it out on little plastic blue and red buttons instead of your loved ones. Or just take a seat at the bar and get lost in the comic strips that cover its surface.

With regular performances by fiddlers, string bands, and rockabilly acts, this rural roadhouse doesn't look nearly as welcoming as it really is. And that's perfect for warding off relatives who may want to tag along on your night out.

An underground bar with a penchant for experimental music, Neptunes usually features a solid drink deal, like an $8 "Grown Folks Special." Just don't tell the 'rents that you're as likely to find nineties-themed bingo as free jazz there.

Decompress at Slim's, downtown Raleigh's oldest bar and perhaps its greatest straight-up drinking locale. It would be just the kind of place you'd take dad—if it weren't for all the blistering punk and metal shows.

Surf Club

703 Rigsbee Avenue, Durham

Surf Club is sort of a dive bar but not; it's a neighborhood joint, if your neighbors are cool people and your neighborhood's bartenders know how to sling excellent cocktails and have good beers on tap. Drop the fam off at Fullsteam and go drink with the townies. —Sarah Willets